The 33rd annual Ocean County Columbus Day Parade and Italian Festival attracted large crowds to Seaside Heights, New Jersey, on Oct. 13.
The festival showcased diverse cultural traditions from various communities, including the Italian folk group I Cantori Popolari delle Isole Eolie, Irish bands, Portuguese folk performers, and a Chinese waist drum team from New York.
More than 80,000 people took part in the festivities over the weekend, including more than 40,000 on Sunday alone, according to Mike Blandina, chairman of the event.
The Sunday parade featured 55 organizations, six floats, and 18 bands, celebrating Italian American heritage.
Honoring Tradition Amid Cancel Culture
Rep. Chris Smith (R-N.J.) attended the event and spoke to The Epoch Times about the importance of observing traditions.“This is a celebration of Italian Americans. Certainly, Columbus Day is a tremendous day. It’s amazing how many highly principled and dedicated people have contributed to making America great. And that’s the Italian American heritage. It’s incredible,” Smith said, noting the deep cultural roots many across the state share.
Smith said history should be remembered and cherished, not erased.
“We can’t forget our roots, and these roots are rich in the culture of Italy and Italian Americans. It’s incredibly rich, and we need to celebrate that. That’s just what we’re doing today.”
Keeping the Heritage Alive
Blandina, who has chaired the parade for more than 30 years, shared similar views. He expressed pride in the community’s unwavering support.“This is definitely our best year ever. We had three days of great weather, amazing crowds, and fabulous entertainment. It’s a great weekend, culminating in Columbus Day, which is all about our Italian heritage and culture,” he told The Epoch Times.
Blandina resisted calls to cancel the national holiday. For some people, Columbus Day—which is meant to honor Christopher Columbus for discovering the New World—is a controversial holiday because they regard him as a colonizer instead of a discoverer and that his arrival led to the forceful taking of land and widespread loss of indigenous ways of life.
“It’s very important for our heritage and culture. We’ve been under attack, but Columbus Day is our holiday. We’re not against anyone else’s holiday, but they shouldn’t try to take away ours,” he said.
‘This Is America’
The Epoch Times spoke to some festivalgoers who said they wanted to maintain the cultural event.“We shouldn’t change the past by canceling things,” said Maura Nallen, a retiree.
Others, however, had mixed reactions to the national holiday.
“It’s a tough call. America was inhabited by indigenous populations, and Columbus came over. It’s sad, but we’re still Italian. This is America, a melting pot. We have to accept everybody,” said Lynn Quinn, a teacher and Seaside Park resident.
